Statement on classification of registered housing associations in Northern Ireland, October 2020

Following passage of the Housing (Amendment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has completed an assessment of registered housing associations (RHAs) in Northern Ireland. The review has been completed in the context of international rules laid out in the European System of Accounts 2010 and the accompanying Manual on Government Deficit and Debt 2019.

The ONS has concluded that RHAs in Northern Ireland are private, market producers and as such they will be reclassified to the private non-financial corporations (S.11002) sub-sector for the purpose of national accounts and other economic statistics. This classification takes effect from 28 August 2020, the date the legislation came into force. The reclassification has been communicated in a letter (PDF, 52KB) sent on 30 October 2020.